With You By My Side
by NapEnthusiast
Summary: Tony and Steve share an awkward moment after a battle in New York and ignore each other until Steve finally starts talking to Tony and Tony finally lets him. [Ship: STony, Mentions of Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Spider-Man]


A/N:  
Sorry to bother you right before you are reading this story, I just wanted to let you know a couple of things.  
First of all, I don't own these characters and all that usual stuff, I'm just playing in another's sandbox.  
Secondly, I apologise for any spelling and grammar mistakes but seeing as English is not my first language I can't guarantee a perfectly written text (I really tried though!

Now, I want you to enjoy this little STony story (which is also the first one I have written about this ship but I can't stop writing anymore - I just adore Steve and Tony together) so have fun!

NapEnthusiast

The Avengers were in a New York City subway station, fighting against a robot army created by a madman whom they had already captured. SHIELD was taking care of him and it was the Avenger's job to clean up the mess. Most of the army had been taken out and the last one was standing right in front of Captain America.

"I'm gonna take out the last one, you can tell the civilians they can exit the subway now." he said and his comrades could here every word over their intercom. While Natasha was looking for Hulk and eventually calmed him down and Clint, Thor and Peter were starting to tell frightened passengers that it was time to leave the subway, Cap threw his shield at the last remaining robot. Before it hit him, however, there was a blast from the side and the robot soon was a pile of melted and then again hardened metal.

Cap rolled his eyes but couldn't stop the smirk that crept to his lips.

"Show-off." he said and turned to see Iron Man hovering only few inches over the ground, his arm still pointing at the now dead robot.

"Says the guy in a skin-tight suit to show-off his muscles and his ass." Tony remarked and Steve sniggered.

"That's not on me, you designed this suit so you are showing me off."

Before this bantering could go on they were interrupted by Natasha.

"Guys, it would be nice if you could help us wrapping this all up. I am ready to go home and have a drink or too."

"We have earned it." Clint agreed and so they finished their work efficiently and effectively.

It was early evening when they returned to their mansion. Tony's proposition to order pizza was met by enthusiastic cheers from Clint, Natasha, Bruce and Peter, but Thor had never eaten pizza before and didn't think it sounded like something he absolutely needed to try after Bruce had explained to him what it was (after all, why would you put all kinds of stuff and dough with tomato sauce and cheese on top of it?).

"No, no pizza. We need to eat healthier food, I'm gonna cook something." Steve said and everybody rolled their eyes. He was being kind of a mother-hen sometimes and got weird phases during which he wanted all of them to eat healthy, get a lot of sleep and work out the perfect amount of time. The others had learned to live with it but that didn't make it less annoying.

"Fine but hurry, I am dying of hunger."

"It would go faster if you helped me in the kitchen."  
"Sorry Cap, but cooking for all of us was your idea so I won't help you. Besides, I have to fix some things on my suit."  
"That's your favourite excuse, Tony, isn't it?"

"Yes, because it always works. There is always something to fix." and with a smirk, Tony left them standing in their shared living area, going to his lab.

Bruce murmured something of helping Tony and went after him, Clint and Natasha mumbled something about errands they had to run and Thor wanted to see Jane.

"Dinner will be ready in two hours, don't be late!" Steve yelled after him and Thor assured him he would be back in time.

"Are you going to leave me too?" Steve sighed in Peter's direction. The kid looked guilty.

"Yeah, you know, I have this big test coming up and I have already missed enough school. Aunt May is already furious so I should really head home."

Peter kept rambling on and on and Steve was sure there was another reason behind Peter's departure.

"Have you met someone?"

Peter blushed and nodded shyly.  
"Well, then I won't hold you here. Go." Steve laughed and Peter thanked him before he finally took his leave.

Steve got dinner started and kept thinking about love which wasn't a topic he thought about often.

As an Avenger you did not have regular working hours but it wasn't just fighting the bad guys and that was it. Especially as the team leader, Steve had to attend SHIELD meetings, do press work, write reports and still eat, sleep, work out and fight evil. He didn't complain about his lack of free time though, because who would he spend it with anyway? His colleagues (and only friends) were engrossed in their own projects and all had someone besides the people they worked with. Clint had his family to take care of, Natasha was always off on some mission for the government, Peter had to keep up with his school work and be a normal teenager once in a while, Bruce was meeting up with some friends from when he was at university who didn't know he was The Hulk so he would feel normal some of the time, Thor either spent his time at Asgard or when he was visiting he spent every free second with Jane and Tony was always either doing something for Stark Industry, experimenting in his lab or hanging out with Pepper.

Steve smiled a little when he thought about the fact that Pepper had not been at the mansion for several weeks now and as far as he knew, Tony had not been in touch with her. Of course, them not seeing each other often was not new since they both were incredibly busy people but Steve had a feeling that they were taking a break or maybe (at least that's what he hoped) had broken up.

Steve forced his thoughts away from the image of a Tony that was single and back on the market.

The only thing Steve did in his spare time was meet Bucky at the SHIELD headquarters where his memory was restored. He helped by providing a consistency and stability in Bucky's life so it would be easier for him to get back on his feet and to reverse the brain-wash he had experienced. Other than that, Steve didn't do much and it didn't bother him often because sometimes he got lucky and he and Tony would play a game of chess or he would sit in Tony's lab and catch up on modern culture while the genius was mumbling stuff to himself and talking to Jarvis. Tony was very keen on educating Steve in modern movies and literature and Steve was happy to learn from him (especially when this involved them on a couch watching movies together). It always felt like maybe almost a date to Steve but of course it never was one. They weren't dating and Tony was with Pepper.

"But maybe he isn't anymore" a traitorous voice said in the back of Steve's head. Steve ignored it, as usual. His thoughts turned to different matters and soon he was running around the kitchen, cooking a meal for his friends who he considered to be family.

Just when Steve had informed Tony, Bruce, Natasha and Clint that dinner was ready and they should set the table Thor showed up.

Dinner started with comfortable chatter all around the table but soon there was a slump in conversation (Natasha never talked much and Clint didn't seem in the mood to converse) so Tony made an announcement.

"Maybe you have noticed already but Pepper and I am taking a break."

He took a deep breath.

"Actually, we're not really taking a break, we have decided it is better for us to split up."

The table went silent and Bruce was the first one to say something.  
"That sucks, I'm sorry to hear it."  
Tony only shrugged.

"I know you could all see it coming, even I could and normally I am not good with that sentimental stuff."

And they all HAD seen it coming, Steve thought.

"You are okay, right?" Steve asked.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be. As I said, I saw it coming. We split on good terms, no hard feelings. You and I can hang out together when everyone's out having fun with their spouses. It'll be 'The Club of the Lonely'".

The others looked at Tony with concern. He rolled his eyes.

"Jeez, I am joking of course. I don't wanna hang out with this guy more than I have to."

He nodded towards Steve and everybody started laughing. Steve gave a cocky answer and their banter continued while the conversation around them went back to normal.

After dinner everyone excused themselves and left the table until only Tony and Steve were left.

"So, you wanna watch a movie tonight?" Tony asked and couldn't keep a hint of desperation out of his voice.

Steve was pretty tired from their fight earlier that day and felt like could've gone to sleep right there and then but of course he agreed. He took every opportunity to be (alone) with Tony, even if that meant getting less sleep than was good for him.

They headed down to Tony's lab and got comfortable on the couch. Tony started the first movie of a trilogy called "Lord of The Rings" and Steve found himself fascinated with the movie.

"That was amazing." Steve said eventually, when the end-credits were playing. He looked to Tony who was comfortably sprawled over the couch.

He smirked.

"I knew you would like it. Let's watch the next part."  
"I would love to, but I really gotta go to bed. I am super tired. And you should too." Steve said and, yet again, Tony rolled his eyes.

"Come on, old man! If you don't wanna watch another part how about chess?"  
"Sorry, Tony, but I am gonna head to bed."

"Please, Steve, I need a distraction or I will go mad."  
"What do you mean?"  
"I might have lied a little when I told you guys about Pepper. We did break up but it wasn't on good terms."

Steve frowned. Whatever that woman had done to his Tony – no, not his, he thought annoyed at himself – he would try to fix it.  
"What happened?"

Tony rubbed his face.

"We got in a huge fight and she blamed me for all the things that are going wrong in her life. She is having a pretty tough time and I haven't been there to support her. She said she couldn't be with someone who was as selfish as I."

Steve scooped closer to Tony and said in his Captain voice "Tony, look at me."  
It took a few moments until Tony followed the command and his brown eyes met Cap's.

"Whatever Pepper is going through, it is not your fault. And you are not selfish. You are the most selfless man I know, you shouldn't beat yourself up about this."  
"But I never deserved her and now she has realised it. What if one day, you and the others will too." Tony whispered and Steve almost missed it. Almost.

In one swift motion he captured Tony in a warm embrace and even though the both of them had never shared a hug before it felt like the most natural thing.

"You deserved her and you deserve us. We won't go anywhere." Steve said and tightened his embrace because Tony was not returning it.

"I won't go anywhere.", he whispered into Tony's ear and that was when he felt the other man's strong arms wrap around his torso, pushing their bodies even closer together.

That's how they sat, they both didn't know for how long. When Tony started to doze off against Steve's shoulder he swooped him up carefully and slowly carried him to his bedroom where he undressed him, careful not to wake him up, and pulled the blanket over is limp body. As he turned to leave he heard Tony mumble "You said you wouldn't go anywhere". Steve was so stunned and would definitely not turn down the offer of sleeping besides a genius he adored, so he took off his clothes and got under the blanket next to his friend.

"Thank you." Tony whispered before he dozed off again and Steve lay awake for a while, contemplating how he could get out of the pit he had fallen into. When sleep finally found him he knew that he wouldn't get out of the pit but was falling deeper and deeper in love with Tony Stark.

It was two weeks after their shared night and Tony was not feeling good. The Avengers were on a mission and it wasn't going well. His suit had shut down and he couldn't get it open so he was restrained to watching the battle in front of him, trying to keep a low profile. What he saw worried him.

Thor had gone back to Asgard and Natasha was on another of her secret missions. Clint was on holiday, spending time with his family. And when Steve, Peter, Bruce and Tony had been called in for this job it had seemed harmless. Someone had exported new weapons to America and they were supposed to capture the suppliers and the purchasers.

But those weapons were more powerful than all of them had thought and now they found themselves up against a total of ten people. Tony couldn't fight and Peter was not as well-trained as he could've been because he was a bloody teenager. Tony felt a nudge of guilt for even getting him into this kind of danger. Bruce was handling himself well but Steve seemed to have a hard time. Tony couldn't bare to look at him getting cornered by four of the guys there. Steve was constantly using his shield as cover from the guns and so couldn't throw it around like usual, taking out all the guys attacking him. Their intercom had broken down at the beginning at the fight so there was no way for them to communicate either. As Tony watched Steve fighting for his life he felt another surge of guilt bolting through his body. After their shared night he had ignored Steve as much as he could. It wasn't out of embarrassment – it had felt so good to talk to Steve about Pepper – but rather out of awkwardness on Tony's side. When he had awoken in his bed with Steve by his side he had felt so content that it shocked him. He had never felt this way waking up next to Pepper. He spent the time until Steve woke up looking at his (gorgeous) face and adoring him in his head. And then it had hit him. He liked Steve as something more than a best friend.

Tony had admitted to himself a long time ago that he was bisexual. But he had always had a preference for women and so this uncharacteristically strong attraction to Steve that had formed that night was completely unknown to him.

He was frightened of the intensity of his feelings and what he would be destroying if he let anyone know.

"Tony?!" Steve shouted and ripped Tony from his thoughts. Somehow the five henge men were unconscious on the ground and Steve was kneeling next to Tony.

"Yes, I am okay." he answered and tried to get up but his muscles were sore. The suit had taken most of the blast he had endured a while back but his body had still felt the impact.

"Can you get out of that suit?" Steve asked, concern in his eyes. Tony noticed that Steve's head was bleeding and that he looked overly tired.

"No, it's broken. JARVIS can't help me. You'll have to cut me open back at the mansion."

"I can't carry you, the suit is too heavy." Steve said exasperated.

"We have to leave, I think they sent back-up. Let the Agents of SHIELD deal with them. We need to get out of here."

"Just leave me and get you and the others safe. I'll be fine, I'll pretend I am dead or something."  
The plan sounded ridiculous to Tony's own ears but he still meant it. He didn't want anyone in danger because of his own failure.

"Bullshit, Tony. We're gonna take you with us."

And they did. Peter started shooting webs like crazy and built a blanket that was strong enough to hold the suit.

"We will either take one side and will be able to carry him that way." Peter said and while Tony was amazed at how intelligent the fifteen-year-old boy was, he couldn't help but flinch at his sight. There was a big lash on his cheek and his one shoulder seemed to be out-of-joint.  
"You can't carry me in the state you are in." Tony protested but he was lifted onto the blanket and soon after found himself in a helicopter with Bruce, Steve and Peter.

All blood had drained from Peter's face and he screamed out of pain when his shoulder was put back into its socket by a medic. Again, Tony felt guilty.

It took a while until Tony was freed from his suit and although he knew it was time to face Steve he did not want to. Instead, he met with May Parker, Peter's aunt, to explain to her that her nephew had to stay in the medical wing of the Avengers Mansion due to a concussion.

They met in a local coffee shop and Tony apologized for putting her nephew in such a compromising situation.

She was pretty mad at him and Tony didn't leave with a lighter heart as he had hoped.

When he came home, Steve was waiting for him. Tony groaned.

"What? Not happy to see me?", Steve asked, his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"Because if that's the case, maybe I should just leave. After all you own this house and it seems like you don't want me in it."  
"You are being overly dramatic." Tony said but he couldn't look Steve in the eye. His heart was pounding fast. He didn't want this confrontation. He didn't want to feel guilty.

"Am I, though? You have ignored me the past few weeks and after everything we have been through, Ultron and then the whole thing with Bucky and all the other shit we had to deal with you just throw me, your friend, away like I don't mean anything to you!"

"I didn't throw you away. I was just… busy."  
"Stop lying to me, Tony." Steve shouted and took an angry step towards him.

"Stop lying to me and stop blaming yourself for everything. Stop feeling guilty for my wounds or the wounds of the others. We all know what we got ourselves into. You aren't forcing us to be there and fight along side you. We are a team and sometimes some of us get hurt. But you need to stop blaming yourself for every time that happens because eventually that's what will destroy you, not the battle."

Steve was breathing heavily after his little speech and Tony finally met his eyes. Steve could see all the guilt, pain and anguish in those eyes and was tempted to kiss him right then and there but restrained himself.

"Peter is just a kid."

"Tony, Peter is Spider-Man. I know you want to keep him safe but you can control the danger he gets in. You are not sending him off to awfully dangerous missions but you are also not keeping him in New York all the time where he might run mad. You are doing everything right, you can't protect everyone."

"But how can I live with myself watching how all the people I care about in this world get hurt."  
"You learn to share your guilt with friends and to talk about things. Just like you did the other night. I know talking about Pepper made you feel better. You need to open up more, Tony."

Tony was mortified. He had hope the subject of that night was not going to be addressed but here they were.

"That morning, when I awoke next to you, I felt so content, I haven't felt like that ever before. It isn't easy for me, not having friends and not being from this time. Sometimes I wish I could go back to my old life because I sometimes feel like I am not in the right place. But that morning I was in the right place and you are the reason for the happiness that surged through me that morning. You aren't inflicting the wounds on me, the guys doing evil stuff are. You are healing my wounds, Tony."

Steve made a step forward and stared at Tony's lips. For Tony that was invitation enough. He grabbed Steve by the neck and pulled him down to meet him in a passionate kiss. Steve wrapped his strong arms around Tony's back and held him in a tight embrace while they deepened their kiss.

Because they were both out of breath they pulled back and stared into each others eyes. Soon, a small smile spread over Steve's face and Tony couldn't help but smile back. Right now, only Steve mattered and right now, Tony knew with Steve by his side he could face everything. And judging by the kiss and the night they spend together afterwords, Steve knew it too.


End file.
